Culmination
by silvertonguesnake13
Summary: A blood curdling scream ripped through her throat as a powerful flame-like energy left her body through her mouth and hands. The cracking dark flames encased the bodies of the all henchmen, women, and the trucks, before it began crushing them. Bones cracking and splintering inside skin shells, skulls collapsing in on precious grey matter, blood pouring out of helpless eyes, noses,
1. Recall

_**Recall**_

* * *

It was a warm morning in a small villa of the coast of Southern France. It was around 9 in the morning, and a young woman of small stature, lightly tanned porcelain skin and long dark hair was doing yoga on the roof patio of the villa. The only sounds were the young woman's occasional deep breaths and a few birds chirping in the trees. She had started her meditation, and thus began floating a few inches off her yoga mat, when a cell phone near her began ringing. The woman's left hand began glowing green, as did the phone, before it floated itself into her hand and she answered the call.

"Mendoza."

" _How's France, Mendoza?_ "

"Honestly, Hill. I have two weeks left on my vacation, and that fiasco in New York you had me clean up was bad, so this had better be worth it." Sonya Mendoza was not playing games, she was forced on her leave, so she decided she would piss her bosses off as much as she could.

" _Well, since you asked so nicely, and you obviously don't pay attention to the news, you need to get here, like yesterday. S.H.I.E.L.D. is officially under ash and still in flames. I need you here in the private sector Mendoza, Romanoff managed to get you off the radar, but not before Stark found out about you._ " There was a silent moment where Agent Maria Hill almost thought Sonya had hung up on her.

"What?!" Her voice was sharp and laced with disbelief.

" _A Stark jet will be in the private field in Agde in three hours. Mrs. Potts, who was on business in Greece, knows you as an associate of mine from Argentina, who is currently on vacation in the south of France. Play the part, and we'll see you soon._ "

"Fine."

After saying that Sonya hung up and the phone in her hand began to disintegrate surrounded by the dark green glow. Sighing loudly, and cursing the stupid organization to hell, she got up and made her way into the villa to close everything up, pack and get dressed to leave.

* * *

The Stark Industries jet looked almost out of place in the small French Airport as the slightly below average height young woman, dressed head to toe professionally in Chanel. The door to the plane dropped down and Sonya climbed up easily. She greeted the lovely Pepper Potts, and they had an easy conversation before Ms. Potts decided to catch a nap while they were just over Portugal. They arrived in New York quickly, and Sonya Mendoza was in the newly renovated "Avengers Tower" much quicker than she would have liked. She sighed as Pepper Potts left the elevator and told her that she'd find Tony and Ms. Hill at the top. Sonya simply nodded and bid her a good rest of the day before the doors closed and her demeanor changed completely. Sonya reached into her handbag and pulled out a silver circlet, with a very faintly glowing emerald gem at the center. She slipped it on her head evenly and smiled wickedly as the doors of the elevator opened. Maria Hill was waiting on the other side of the door and cracked a smiled at Sonya's attire.

" _Wow_ , is this pretty much what you looked like during covert ops?"

"Funny. Bruce is here too, no? I can feel his energy, but that is not important, where is Mr. Stark? I was told this is a meeting with him." Sonya's light tone stopped at the mention of the billionaire and Maria nodded. She was about to speak when she was cut off by the aforementioned man.

"Normally, I'd joke around about how all you people get your names from Russia, but I have a more important question. Why you, when Romanoff had the power to delete herself when she posted everything, why you?" Tony Stark's words made her turn to face him, and that's when she noticed that Bruce Banner was with him. She gave a small smirk, that widened when she saw both men's eyes flicker to her crown.

"Why me, you ask? For the same reason that Dr. Banner chose to destroy his work, for the same reason Tasha is always working to destroy Red Room, for the same reason you, yourself, make your suits to _your_ biological measures. So that other people, more wicked people, do not aid history in repeating itself. Tell me Mr. Stark, you call yourself a genius, yet you are very slow at understanding the mentality of those around you." As she spoke, she approached the pair and Tony seemed to shrink into his suit. She offered a hand to Bruce Banner with a smile playing on her lips.

"Sonya Mendoza, pleasure to finally meet you Dr. Banner."

Dr. Banner gave her a bemused smile as he shook her hand gently.

"You...you know me?"

"Well, I'm sure to get you in the Avengers Initiative, someone told you it was S.H.I.E.L.D. that keeps the people after your brain at bay. Also, up until recently, we kept certain...incidents from becoming public knowledge. Do not worry about that by the way, Tasha deleted me from the system, but since I have...had a certain level of authority, everything I was involved with, even just by name, was erased as well, anything the 'Other Guy' did doesn't exist. At least, not to anyone other than you, whomever you may have told, and me. Besides, Hulk and I are very well acquainted." Sonya smiled at Bruce's almost horrified expression, she would have laughed, but she didn't want to seem rude. Tony on the other looked mildly impressed, Sonya quirked an eyebrow is his expression briefly before directing her next few choice words at him.

"Since that is all settled, I am sure I was not called here from my vacation for simple pleasantries. It also seems that you have certain positions available for those of interest, no Mr. Stark?" They had only just noticed that Sonya had a slight accent, slightly muddled and implacable, but not unpleasant. Tony nodded and gestured for them all to follow him into a secure conference room, there he proceeded to list why she need to work with him.


	2. Always Prepared

_**Always Prepared**_

* * *

A sigh escaped Sonya as she sat at her desk reading through the medical files Tony Stark managed to acquire on all of the so-called "Avengers." The door to her office slid open and she looked up to see Maria Hill standing there in her usual professional attire and holding up a take out bag from SmashBurger. Sonya flashed her a small smile and waved her in, gesturing to the seats in front of her desk, as she started pulling papers off of it.

"'The Avengers' I am not sure if I approve of the name." Maria let out a snort at the brunette's statement before just fully laughing and shaking her head at her.

"You don't approve? You? The legendary 'Green Dragon' really? You're in no position to judge the Avengers Initiative, Sunny." Agent Hill was still laughing until a french fry hit her in the forehead, then Sonya was laughing at her expression.

The laughter was cut short when the building shook and the lights flickered off. Both women were already moving, Maria pulling out her guns, Sonya on the other hand ripped off the button up shirt and dress pants she was wearing to reveal an armor-like vest and tight black leathery spandex pants with her weapons holster belt on her waist and thighs along with the mid-calf high combat boots she was wearing. Maria idly wondered how she managed to hide that under her work clothes, before she decided that she'd ask later. Emergency lights flickered on as Sonya clipped on a customized upside down back scabbard, that holstered her two adamantium katana swords that she seemed to pull out of nowhere.

"You work on evacuation, I am going to see what is going on from the sky." Sonya's tone left no room for argument. She approached the large floor-to-ceiling window in her office as her eyes were taken over by a darkish green glow and a dark green cloak began floating toward her. Sonya slid the window open and simply jumped as the cloak followed her and hooked it self onto her shoulders. Maria saw her fly upwards as she was rushing out of the office with her phone pressed to her ear, nearly shouting orders at some lower level agents Tony hired.

Sonya floated around surveying the Avengers Tower for commotion that she might be needed for, when she heard it. Coming from the uppermost floors was the telltale yells of the one and only Hulk. Groaning loudly, Sonya flew as fast as she could toward the sound and hoped that it wasn't too late.

She flew straight through a broken window and landed crouched in the almost demolished laboratory that she knew to be the shared one between Bruce and Tony. Her eyes lost the strange glow as she scanned the area looking for either the Hulk or whomever was responsible. After making sure that the area was clear she continued making her way into the almost destroyed floor, now having unholstered her two guns. She noticed how there were flashing green and red lights, she assumed that Stark set that as a precaution for Dr. Banner. She was a put off by the sudden quite that seemed to surround her, when suddenly there was a loud roar from the Hulk himself and Sonya jetted herself in that direction.

She arrived to a scene which she wasn't sure if she should laugh or shut down the Avengers Initiative herself. Tony had about half of his Iron Man suit on trying to stop the Hulk from pounding the bloody mess out of Thor, who was using the hammer to deflect all of the Hulk's punches. Groaning, Sonya holstered her guns and stepped closer so the Hulk could here her.

"Hulk! Hulk, look! It's me! Dragon, from Croatia! Do you remember me?" At her voice all movement from the three imbeciles stopped and they turned to look at her.

"Hulk, I need you to drop the alien, and let us have Bruce back. Can you do that for me?" At that Tony snorted and was about to make a snide comment before the Hulk let go of Thor and moved toward the Green Dragon. Thor and Tony both moved with Hulk to stealthy stop him if something even slightly goes wrong. Sonya put on hand up to stop their movements and spoke in a calm soft voice.

" _Trebam_ Bruce. _Molim._ " Much to the surprise of the other two avengers, the Hulk began shrinking as he approached the smaller woman. Sonya pulled off her cloak just as he shrunk completely, leaving Bruce pretty much naked, and draped it on the man laying on the floor by her feet. Her head snapped up to where Thor and Tony were staring at her stupefied, her eyes regained their mysterious glow as she floated over Bruce's sleeping form under her cloak. When her feet touched the ground again, her eyes returned to normal, but she had a murderous glare pointed at both men as she stepped toward them slowly.

"Have you not learned?! Are you both really so stupid as to bring out the Hulk in a building filled with innocent people? People here are not gods, or mutations, or have super armor to protect them like we do. Your stupidity could have cost the lives of all these people!" Sonya's accent seemed to get thicker, and her tone was sharp, both Tony and Thor seemed to be frozen in either shame or fear.

Probably both, or rather hopefully both.

She turned her back to them as Bruce seemed to wake up slowly and walked toward him. She pressed a finger against her ear and spoke almost to herself, but Tony realized she was utilizing the earpiece he'd left in her office.

"JARVIS, we are going to my medical office, I want to check over Bruce make sure we aren't bothered." Thor moved closer to help the small woman but stopped when she turned her head to glare at them.

"Do not follow us, do not send anyone for us, do not even let my name slip from your lips until this mess is clean and I am positive that Bruce is truly well. Clear?" When they both nodded she continued with Dr. Banner, speaking to him with a soft voice to convince him to let her check him over. When finally he agreed and insisted he could walk, he stood, being mindful of keeping the cloak closed around his body. Tony and Thor shared a look before Tony decided to comment.

"I...don't know how to respond to that."

* * *

A small while later, after the initial check over, Bruce and Sonya were simply in her lab, comparing blood samples and only half-heartedly trying to figure out why the Hulk responds so well to the so-called Green Dragon.

"So you have no idea? At all?"

"None whatsoever, and honestly, I have yet to try and research it. Ever since Croatia, I have been able to contain the Other Guy much easier. I think he fears me." Sonya responded with a laugh.

"Or respects you. Fear would more likely cause him to lash out and hurt you, respect on the other hand, that is something we can work with." Bruce had a faraway look in his eyes for a moment, before he gave the young woman a small, tired smile. Sonya patted his shoulder and shot him an equally small smile.

"Whatever it is, we can look into it more at another time. You need rest, doctor. I mean it, as your acting physician, I am telling you to go eat, drink plenty of water, and sleep. Doctor's orders." Sonya gave a mock serious look before smiling and shooing him to do as she said. As soon as he left, she slipped her cloak back on, grabbed her portable medical lab and proceeded to check all the floors of the tower for anyone that might have been hurt or gone into shock.


	3. Of Lunch and Redheads

_**Of Lunch and Redheads**_

* * *

Following the Hulk event earlier in the week, Sonya spent a few days hiding weapons, and various versions of her normal "Super Suit" all over the building as a simple precautionary measure. It was a very responsible move on her part and showed her dedication to protect others and fight wrongdoings.

That being said, the doctor herself is currently curled up on the floor under her desk, sleeping. It's quite comical, because for the last hour different Stark lab technicians came looking for her, and left confused because no one seemed to know where she was. Dr. Bruce Banner came down at the end of that hour to ask her if she wished to have lunch with him, when he walked in and noticed the office empty he, also, was confused.

"JARVIS?"

"Under the desk, sir." The AI replied in it's usual cool British accent. Bruce nodded and approached the desk to get the woman he now counted as a friend. When he was close enough to peer over the side to the space under the desk, the tip of a gun was suddenly pressed to his forehead, and he froze.

"Qui creus que ets?" He heard her voice speaking the foreign language, as she cocked the gun before he saw her. When she finally moved out of her small nest, she stared at him blankly before her eyes slowly filled with recognition at who was standing before her. She quickly uncocked the gun, locked the safety and hid it away again.

"I am so sorry Doctor Banner. Sometimes my mind just goes back to some point of my past when I wake up, I am usually alone. Are you okay? Can I help with anything?"

"No harm done. I wanted to ask if you'd want to have lunch with me up in the lab I sometimes share with Tony. Only if you want to, of course." Bruce looked a bit bashful as he spoke but was pleasantly surprised when Sonya nodded and got up.

"I can do that, I don't have much work because your team is my work, and half of you aren't here. Let's go, are we eating in the lab, or is that common area fixed? It seemed nice." Sonya looked at Bruce for confirmation then grabbed her large purse and followed him to the elevator.

"Avenger Lounge if you will, JARVIS." Bruce spoke toward the omnipresent AI. The elevator began moving upward and the pair of doctors were enveloped in a comfortable silence. Sonya noticed that Bruce glanced at her before the elevator stopped and JARVIS announced that they had arrived. She didn't think too much into it and stepped out of the elevator first, with Bruce right behind her. The short woman looked around and noticed the area that was in chaos just a few days ago was almost completely spotless.

"I am glad to see the area is back in order." Bruce nodded at her statement and lead her through the large open lounge area toward a bar kitchenette near the large windows. Bruce asked her to take a seat at the bar with him, he has already arranged a small feast of cold cuts, cheeses and bread along with salads and the like. They prepared the food they preferred and suddenly Bruce was blindsided by the question Sonya asked him.

"Doctor, how do you feel about your teammates?" Her tone was light, but he felt a small chill at the fact that she could probably disband them. Bruce stared at her confused for a moment before he responded.

"Why do you ask?"

"Doctor Banner, do I need to remind you that I no longer have any power over you all? I work for Anthony Stark, not S.H.I.E.L.D." Sonya's tone was very flat, and she made it a point to not look at him.

"I don't know if I consider us a team, really. Together, all of us, we have problems that I'm sure will hinder us someway sooner or later, but considering how far we've come now, I'm optimistic in the sense that we may be able to set aside those problems." Bruce Banner opted to give her a more general answer, just because the Hulk trusted her, doesn't mean he did. Sonya turned to study his face after his answer, Bruce noticed her hypnotic pale blue eyes looked almost icy, which made him a bit nervous. She seemed ready to say something to him when the one and only Tony Stark decided that that moment would be perfect to interrupt.

"Well if it isn't my two favorite doctors! You know, I'm hurt, you guys are doing lunch, without me." Sonya rolled her eyes and turned in her stool to look at him, her face expressionless.

"Mr. Stark, I am pleased to see you have fixed mostly everything." Tony gave her an easy smile and shrugged.

"You like it? I was hoping you would. You SHIELD women are hard to please you know?" Tony's remark was met with silence and that only made the billionaire smile wider.

"Tell me, doctor. Do you like working with us?" He paused, his smile falling away to his signature smirk as he moved to the other side of the bar. The two doctors turned to look at him, one concerned, the other calculating.

"Or would you prefer being out doing undercover work? Taking down things like... What's it called? Oh you're wearing one. Taking down 'Crown' hm?" Tony's arrogant smirk made Bruce realize he probably said something he shouldn't have. The doctor looked at Sonya concerned before that emotion was changed for worry when he saw her expression hardened a bit. She slipped off of her stool and picked up her purse, Bruce took note of the metallic claws she wore, before she spoke.

"I must cut this luncheon short, I'm afraid. I realize I am behind on certain paperwork. Thank you again, Dr. Banner." She nodded at the doctor, shot Tony a hard look and made her way to the elevator quickly. She stopped a few steps short of the doors of the elevator just as they dinged and slid open. The famed Russian ex-assassin Natasha Romanoff stepped out of the elevator with a small smirk on her face. The Russian gave the Euro-Hispanic woman a quick once-over before she spoke.

"The last time I saw you, you had red hair, Sunny."

"Last time you saw me, I was fully Russian, Nat." Sonya replied easily, but cautiously. Natasha took a step forward and that's when all hell broke lose. Sonya threw her large purse at the redhead's legs and turned around with every intention to run away from her and avoid a fight but Natasha hopped over the bag and grabbed on the doctor's lab coat. Sonya sighed and let her rip the long coat off of her as she whirled around to face her.

"Are we really going to do this?" When Sonya didn't get a response she simply got into her fight stance and waited for Natasha to make her move.

From behind them, back at the bar Tony and Bruce were watching the action between the two women who intimidate them greatly. They shared at look before turning back to watch the two graceful women fight.

"JARVIS? Please tell me you're recording this."

"I am, sir." Was all the AI replied.

"S-shouldn't we stop them?" Bruce was a bit concerned watching Sonya and Natasha duke it out. They threw punches, kicks and counterattacks at each other nonstop, it was almost like a choreographed dance. They each maintained their grace, easily slipping past each other's grips like greased up snakes.

"Do you really want to try and get between them like that?" Tony had a valid point.

The two women were flipping over and under the other, each trying to find a way to come out on top but neither would budge and give up. Bruce idly wondered if Sonya would be the only person he'd ever witness best the Black Widow. The two geniuses were suddenly slack jawed at Sonya suddenly going down at one of Natasha's blows. They watched what they thought would be the redhead winning another fight, until Sonya suddenly flipped them both, effectively slamming Natasha into the floor and tangling their limbs together with her on top. They were both breathing panting quietly, and staring at each other before Sonya smiled, leaning down to press their foreheads together. Natasha seemed to let out a huff as their faces touched and they stayed like that for a moment, just breathing. Both Bruce and Tony knew, the women knew each other, and were extremely close considering how Natasha did something to erase Sonya during the fall of SHIELD, so they both assumed this was their weird way of greeting each other. Sonya slowly untangled herself from Natasha and pressed a soft, short kiss on the redhead's lips before pulling herself off of her. Natasha laid out on the floor for a few seconds before pulling herself to her feet as well.

"It's been too long Tasha." Sonya's tone seemed endearing, and soft toward the Russian. Natasha scoffed and tolled her eyes, but there was small glimmer in her eyes that contradicted her next statement.

"It hasn't been long enough really." Sonya shook her head at the redhead's words with a minuscule smile before her expression turned serious.

"Как он?" _How is he?_ Seemed like an innocent enough question, no specifics, no names, but they had a mutual understanding when it came to that particular man. Clint Barton.

"Он видел лучшие времена." _He has seen better days._ Natasha's respond was short and simple but Sonya understood the meaning beneath her words. He is improving. Sonya nodded and looked Natasha over, taking in her current form.

"И вы?" _And you?_ Sonya watched Natasha's face carefully as she nodded before picking up her discarded bag and lab coats. The brunette gestured toward the couches in the lounge and they both took seats close to one another. In fact, they were so close their legs tangled together and their shoulders were pressed together. Tony and Bruce, long forgotten by the two women, shared another look as Sonya and Natasha began conversing softly in Russian. The two men were thoroughly confused, but chose to save themselves worlds of pain, and simply left them alone. Tony disappearing down into his lab to work on improving and redesigning his suit, Bruce on the other hand returned to his lab to analyze Sonya's blood samples once again.

* * *

 _Author's Note_

Hiya guyses and girlses. I'd first and foremost like to let you know that this is my first ever published story. Sure I've written way more than I could ever be bothered to count, but this the first one I'm actually releasing to the masses (aka you people). I do hope you all are enjoying it, I rather like this story, it would break my heart if no one liked it even a bit. That being said, I s'pose I should ask you all to shoot me reviews right about now, right? Well, that is exactly what I'll do honestly, because I'd like to have your input on how you like it, how I could improve my writing, how I could convey visuals and emotions easier, so on and so forth. That being said, I haven't got anything else to tell you, so I'll just let know that I truly appreciate each and every one of you who have read this, until next chapter.


	4. Ptichka

_**Ptichka**_

* * *

 _"She's reacted remarkably to the serums. Her test scores are unprecedented, her abilities are almost completely developed. She'll receive the final serum then we'll bring in the Russians. Everything is going perfect, trust me, nothing can go wrong now." The tall dark haired man in a lab coat speaking was accompanied by a shorter, tanned brunette woman. They were both looking into an examination room where a small girl, aged no more than 5, with bright red hair and bright blue eyes was strapped to a bed. The woman looked up at the man curiously, then looked back at the girl._

 _"And she will not leave Andorra until we say, Nikolai?"_

 _"Red Room knows of our success here in Andorra. They know that allowing them to work with Anastazja, it is our way of making sure they are worthy of receiving more girls like her." Nikolai wrapped an arm around the woman's shoulders and pulled her closer to him._

 _"You trust in Red Room right, Letti? You trust that what we are doing is best for us and for the world, right?" Letti looked up at her husband, green meeting blue, and nodded._

 _"It is going to change the world. Crown is going to change the world, and she will be our Princess. Anastazja is our beacon, she will prove to the world that we can be more than just human."_

 _Crown is going to change the world. Red Room knows of our success. Russia, Andorra, Argentina, the world._

 _Crown. Wear your crown with pride. You are our princess. Crown princess._

Sonya's eyes snapped open, she didn't move, scanning the dark surroundings of her apartment quickly before sighing almost inaudibly and slowly sitting on the edge of her bed. She put her head in her hands for a moment then rubbed her face to try and chase the fatigue away. Sonya looked up at the clock to see if she had at least woken up at a reasonable time to start her day.

 _4:49 am_.

The brunette decided she wouldn't be able to get back to sleep either way, so she got up and got dressed to an early morning jog to get her mind off the nightmare. Memory, not a nightmare, a horrid memory that will never stop haunting you.

Sonya dressed slowly, made her bed, and laid out her clothes for the rest of the day before she was ready to go. She looked at the closed door next to her own room for a moment before deciding to leave a short note for Natasha, who decided to stay with her instead of in Stark Tower. Something about privacy, that's what Natasha said, Sonya knew it was because when Clint came to New York finally, that apartment would be the first place he goes, but then again, she chose to stay there for a similar reason. It was their shared apartment, one of many, that they had under different aliases. She glanced at the clock one last time, _5:25 am_ , before tucking her apartment key and ID into her light jacket pocket. The brunette locked the door on her way out, pressed play on the iPod strapped to her arm and stretched lightly on her way down the stairs. When she finally hit the street, she began jogging at a light pace, taking in her surroundings and getting a new feel of the city she hadn't been in for a long time.

* * *

 _6:40 am._

That's the time the clock read when Sonya finally walked back into the apartment. She noticed there was freshly brewed coffee and the running water of a shower. A small smile made it way onto her face as she moved to the fridge to pull out ingredients to make breakfast. Breakfast first, then shower.

She vaguely heard the water shutting off as she was pouring the batter of the third pancake and as she was plating the pancakes Natasha was pouring coffee into mugs on the breakfast bar. They ate their breakfast together, basking in a comfortable silence. Both former assassins somehow knew that soon enough, their silent morning would be the only thing silent about their days. As soon as Sonya finished her breakfast, she picked up the things she used, put them into the dishwasher and went to get ready for the day.

* * *

Sonya entered the "Avengers Lounge" with Natasha, having decided to spend the day with her, watching the rest of her present teammates. When the elevator door opened, it was quiet, as a former assassin quiet is suspicious, in any setting. Glancing at her redheaded companion and catching the look in her eyes, she knew that the silence was not to be taken lightly. Sonya looked up at the ceiling as she spoke quietly, moving closer to Natasha simply out of habit.

"Jarvis? Why is it so quiet?"

"Mister Stark and Doctor Banner are in their respective labs, Miss Potts is attending a meeting." The disembodied British voice replied coolly. Natasha and Sonya relaxed at the new information, and ventured more calmly into the lounge area. Sonya followed the redhead as she moved to a bookcase next to the bar. Silently, Natasha pulled out two books, both in Russian, passing one to her brunette companion, before they both curled up on sofas in the lounge. Sonya requested that Jarvis play classical music, nothing Russian, softly while they read.

* * *

Sonya was about half way through her book and slowly munching on some chilled grapes that Natasha had gotten for them when Jarvis announced the arrival of a certain "Captain Rogers and Officer Wilson" to the lounge. Natasha noticed that Sonya didn't acknowledge that fact and inwardly felt a bit confused, outwardly though she was emotionless. Steve Rogers and Sam Wilson came in talking about there recent run through of the state of New Jersey looking for more follow up clues on Steve's missing friend.

"It just seems like with every new lead we find, we go one step forward and two steps back."

"Well, Natasha did call him a ghost, and honestly, we're not the ghostbusters so I didn't expect this to be easy."

"A ghost... Yeah, that's what it feels like. Chasing after a ghost."

Sonya estimated that they would be at the bar on the other side of the sofa, so she spoke up.

"When looking for someone trained to be invisible, making yourself obvious is a grave mistake." Both men looked over at the smaller woman slightly shocked. They looked tense until the noticed how close she seemed to be with the redheaded Russian they worked with before. Natasha offhandedly waved one hand, never looking up from her book, while Sonya bookmarked her page, got up from her seat and places her book on Natasha's lap as she moved toward the two soldiers.

"Doctor Sonya Mendoza, nice to finally meet you, I must say, the files Mr. Stark gave were thorough, but picture and videos only do so much for the human physique."

Sam was the first to recover from processing the information thrown at him. He gave her a bemused smile as she seemed to study him and Steve.

"Tony didn't tell us he was bring in any new doctor. You seem to know us though, so I guess introductions aren't needed." Sonya nodded and was about to respond when suddenly the large TV blinked to life behind her. The soldiers were instantly at attentions while the two former assassins feigned being completely at ease as a video began to play on the screen.

The video quality was amazing, obviously HD, and the setting was very familiar, in fact, it was the near the elevator that the soldiers had just used. A very familiar figure was standing in front of that elevator as it opened and the redhead stepped out of it. Both Natasha and Sonya shared a look as the video played on, Sam and Steve moved closer to the television as Natasha moved to the bar. The women weren't interested in watching their own fight, but the men were enraptured in the fluid movements presented on the screen. The video ended soon enough, the two women were speaking quietly in Russian, and both men were watching them with somewhat shocked expressions. There was a small rustle from the air vent above the soldiers seats, that small sound had them both up on their feet with their eyes on the air duct, all questions for the two seemingly dangerous women placed on the back burner. The duct swung open, and the figure that dropped down made a smirk work its way onto both Sonya and Natasha.

" _Ptichka_ , I was waiting for you to make your appearance, when did you get in?" The brunette was the first to respond, Clint turn to look toward the voice that spoke, noticing not only Sonya but Natasha, Steve and Sam staring at him.

"Sunny, you're here. Why are you here? I thought you were in France." Clint walked over to the two women, stopping in front the brunette and holding her face in his hands. Sonya looked up at the blonde archer silently as he studied her face, she closed her eyes briefly when he pressed soft kisses to both of her cheeks and her forehead. Clint then jumped up and sat on the counter of the bar between the two women.

"Well, I _was_ in France, et très belle, but my vacation got cut short because a certain soldier decided to eliminate S.H.E.I.L.D. and a certain redhead remembered my code, which led to Tony Stark catching wind of me. Long story short, Maria called me, and here I am." Sonya noticed that both Sam and Steve paid close attention to her brief explanation as to why she was there. Then the two soldiers moved away to the sofas to discuss finding their ghost, Clint and Natasha began speaking about something Sonya couldn't find herself interested in at the moment.

The dark haired young woman took a moment to study the interactions going on around her. They seemed so normal, almost as if all the people in this room weren't broken and scarred. Sonya looked at her two partners, watching how well they worked without her, comparing their pros and cons. Its funny, thought Sonya, the two people who before adamantly refused to work with other people, for fear of getting too close, work together in perfect unison. She felt like while she worked well together them both, she was the odd man out, her mutations giving her an edge that the other two couldn't fully understand. It made her wonder what her life would have been like if she'd been normal, if she hadn't been-

"Sunny? Are you okay?" The sound of Clint's soft voice cut Sonya's thoughts short and she focused on his face. She nodded slowly before standing up from her seat at the bar.

"I'm fine. I just feel a bit closed in. I'm going for a walk, get to know New York again. I assume you're staying with me as well, so I'll see you later, hm?" Clint nodded as Sonya pressed a short peck to his lips then to Natasha's. Steve shot a confused glance at Sam at the exchange he just witnessed, the latter simply shrugged. Sonya made her way to the elevator, and she heard Clint's nonchalant statement toward Steve and Sam ("She's _very_ intimate with greetings between friends.")

Patiently, Sonya waited for the elevator to reach the ground floor of the tower so she could walk around the city. It was almost evening already, but Sonya didn't fear for her safety too much. Pulling the hood of her sweater up on her head, she set off to her apartment before just exploring and reacquainting herself with the city.


End file.
